How much is too much

[jay]

I recently (about two weeks ago) took in a hamster from kijiji who was being kept in the smallest of cage. It looks like some cheap knock-off crittertrail cage. The hamster hasn't had a wheel, and he is still really young, most likely around four to five months old. I moved him into a ten gallon tank for now, until I get him a bin most likely this weekend. He has a wheel now, of course, but I've noticed he's been using it quite a bit to the point it's gotten me worried. He isn't my first hamster either, so I know the average of a hamster running in it's wheel..most that I've had ran a couple of hours at night, but not constantly for hours throughout night and day. I'm just worried as to why he does it, if I should be worried, etc. Just too worried of a hammie dad.

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[Hamsters82]

That's great that you took this little guy in! And welcome to the forum! To me, it sounds like since he didn't have one before and now has one, he wants to use it as much as possible. If he's still drinking and eating, I'd say he's fine. He just wants to make sure that wheel isn't going anywhere.

And hey--Crittertrails are good cages. I used them for all of my five hamsters.

What is your little guy's name?

[Die Fledermaus]

Maybe he doesn't like that kind of wheel?? Be sure he is comfortable in it - no back bend; in other words, a wide enough wheel, with a solid surface.

A Syrian hamster as you know should be full size at five months.

A suggestion about hamsters. They do not so much want to "escape" as they do to forage for food which they pouch and bring home. They may be happier if given some time to forage in a big bin with food scattered on the clean bedding. Then bring them home with the stash!

Of course there are different types of Critterterails. Some were good for nesting, but the wheel could have been bigger and the floor space a lot bigger. Would have been OK for a dwarf, though.

[jay]

I would hope so. Most of the reason I'm concerned is my last syrian was young, and was always eating and drinking fine, but she constantly ran in her wheel and died from a heart attack suddenly. Not sure if it had anything to do with her running, but it did get me worried when my hamster now started running so much. Also nothing against the critternations either..just the cage he was in was really small and just looked like some cheap knockoff of critternation. You can't even open the front door without the roof clipping off the cage.

And right now he's still really small, so he must be younger. He can just about fit in my palm. His wheel is a habitrail wheel for now, and his back doesn't bend in it. Once he outgrows it, I already have a much larger wheel for him. I'd much rather get him a bin over a critternation though to give him lots of floorspace. Maybe once he's moved into a bin with more to do, he will stop running as much. I haven't seen him forage for food or try to nest or burrow or anything.

And his name is Obi-wan kenhammie.

[Hamsters82]

Awesome another fellow SW fan!! I had a hamster named Chewie! I was only joking with you on the CT's, I just used them because I liked them with my dwarfs and then just got them with my syrians.

Most hamsters die from heart attacks. At least it's quick and painless, my last hamster Chewie took a week to die; I'd rather them go quickly Benny did.

Maybe Obi-Wan KenHammie wants to keep in shape. Maybe he thinks you'll bring home a female hammie for him and he wants to show off how he looks.

Tom--they don't want to escape as much? Tell them to Sophie and Chewie!! I had to tape their cage doors so they wouldn't get any ideas!

[pinky]

Welcome, jay!

That's a handsome little boy you have there!

Good that you're getting a bin. My guess is that he's running partly because of the novelty and partly due to stress. The old digs were insufficient, but they were familiar. Now he's in a tank, where he's more out in the open and vulnerable; he can see out and people can see in. New sights and smells and sounds now that he's with you--maybe he's sensitive to all the stimuli. Does he have a hidey of some sort where he can take refuge from the world? Is he untamed (and therefore more stressed by these big things called humans)?

The fact that he's not nesting or burrowing says to me that he's not settled in--he's not made a part of his world his own. (Where does he sleep?) The sooner he can be transferred to a permanent home, the better.

[jay]

I wasn't sure if heart attacks were something common, my last one was only a baby so I always thought she ran too much and it caused it.

Definitely no females coming home for Obi-wan ;D

And pinky, he's completely tamed, only a little jumpy at times before I take him out. His tank also has three sides of it covered so he feels a little more safe. He has a hidey as well, but he prefers to sleep in his wheel I never knew that syrians burrowed, I've never had one that did. I'll have him moved into a new home as soon as possible. I'll look around tonight to see if I have any bins laying around to use.

[pinky]

Very sad that you lost a youngster. Maybe she had a heart defect that manifested itself with extended activity. I honestly don't think that heart attacks are common among hamsters. In my readings about hamster deaths on forums heart attack is not often cited.

Wow, he is so completely enamored by the wheel, isn't he? Plays there, sleeps there, probably pees there too! So maybe my thoughts about stress are no good! I forgot that he's a Syrian--I'm accustomed to the burrowing behaviors of dwarfs. Sorry about that. My only other thought is temperature--might he sleep out in the open because it's cooler there?

[Dezzi]

Cage/bin size: Equivalent of a 20gal long tank for floor space for a full grown Syrian. Does not need levels or anything, as they are not good climbers and can fall off and break things.

Wheel size: 7" or 8" minimum is usually good for a full grown Syrian.

Running obsessively: pretty normal, provided they're still eating/drinking. Hamsters are most active at dusk and dawn, so if you're around a lot during those times you might notice him running more. Every hamster is different with activity level, I've had some that would run about 5hrs and others that would run more like 14hrs. He's also younger and more energetic. I've had a lot of hams sleep on their wheels, or under their wheels, or with their faces smushed against the side of the bin, or randomly in sporadic spots throughout their cages. Sounds like pretty normal hamster behaviour to me!

Unfortunately, it's pretty common for a hamster (even a young one) to die with no notice. They are good at hiding symptoms because they are prey animals and in the wild, that would make them an easy target. Doing a quick health check every time you handle them can help catch problems earlier but sometimes they just go. (I personally blame inbreeding in pet stores, but that's another rant for another time.)

For foraging like DF suggested, if you don't have a bin you can do a similar thing in their cage. Instead of feeding in a dish, scoop out a little bit of bedding, place food in it, and put more bedding on top. They'll have to use their natural instincts to find the food, and trust me, they will!

Katie: I had hamsters who were escape artists, too! They're very curious and exploratory creatures. I do have to agree that it was food driven, because the #1 place I found any escape artist was trying to make their way into the food bin, or gnawing at my mini fridge.

Even if he is tame, he is in a new place with new sights and smells. Putting an old t-shirt or some tissues you've used to wipe off sweat and dried (sounds gross, but works) in the cage can help him become familiar with surroundings.

Curious what kind of bedding you're using? Soft woods (like pine and cedar) are bad because of the oils in them, but I had one particular hamster that didn't like Aspen (or other kiln-dried hard woods) either. She would spend most of her time on the wheel because she didn't like the feel of the shavings under her feet. Once I switched over to a recycled paper bedding she was burrowing, running around, and not always on her wheel. Silly princess hamturd.

I would say make sure he has everything, give him some things that smell like you, put him in a quiet area, and just observe him for a week. That way you give him time to settle in, and he won't suddenly untame because he has things that smell like you. Plus, you can eliminate the stress factor!

[Die Fledermaus]

Fine advice from all. Nothing I can add.

[jay]

Haven't checked back on this thread for a few days oops.

I've switched him into a bin a couple of days back, it's not as big as I wanted so I'll have to keep looking for a larger one when I'm out. Also got him a really large wheel which I'm unsure of the exact size, but it's a lot larger than his other one. He doesn't seem to like it very much as he's mostly sleeping now. I have aspen bedding, he doesn't seem to mind it either but I thought about switching it to carefresh. I'll try out all the suggestions though to calm him down in his home, thanks

[Die Fledermaus]

Be sure the wheel does not have wire spokes, and is wide enough to prevent uncomfortable back bend.
I guess you know that.

The hammie may sleep when you are awake!